Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do.
My name is Moomi Mod but I also go by Morgan. I am 25 years around the sun and am living and working in the beautiful city of Chicago, Illinois. I am a musician and visual artist.
How did your interest in art begin?
My interest in art began organically at a very young age and its presence within my life has frankensteined itself into a force to which I have largely committed myself in various ways and continue to do so.
What kind of imagery are you drawn to?
I’m drawn to things like smokestacks and factory tubing, wires and circuitry but also natural phenomena like impressive mountain ranges or the ebbing of a storm front. It seems both technology and the organic world are expressing something almost supernatural below the surface, like some mysterious forces are responsible for all of the kinesis and happenings. Furthermore, I love the uncanny, imagery that feels tangible yet undefined. I am drawn to surreal impressions that can be fantastical yet somewhat applicable to reality. Additionally, I feel especially attracted to iconography that evokes physical sensation, visualizations that look as though it can be felt, touched, smelled, or heard. And of course I also love any imagery related to music. Yellow Submarine.
What’s your relationship to sentimentality?
I am often impractical and emotional and those things contribute to the things I create. At times I feel very impulsive and find a stimulus through direct personal narrative regardless if it’s organized or conventional and in doing so can speak to my own notions of sentimentality.
What role does humor play in your work?
I suppose I am attracted to freakishness and absurdity which often manifests itself in various ways through the different modes of work I produce. There are facets of my work I think are funny but are not necessarily included with the intention of being received as funny (but all the better if it is).
What’s been inspiring you lately?
Meredith Monk, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Mica Levi, Shana Moulton’s Whispering Pines to name specifics. More generally I find internet “junk” fascinating: ads on social media, local item listings for sale, fetish magazine archives, random forgotten media etc. As recent as yesterday I became interested in ancient accounts of Ea-Nasir. I’m inspired by phrases I hear in conversation, fonts on hot sauce bottles, balloons, and strange textures. I don’t feel like I ever have a few main sources of inspiration at a time but rather find myself in many pockets at once which I call the “Ouroboros Dram.” My rolodex of inspiration is often realized by use of distorted samples, digital collage or print media however I also reference the techniques and applications of artists I admire greatly.
What makes a great collaborator?
Open mindedness, enthusiasm, and experimentation. I think it’s important to offer both willingness and acceptance when working with collaborators while also sharing a desired ambition to create. Often achieved through a series of trial and error, one of the greatest gifts of collaboration is the opportunity to produce new work that wouldn’t exist without the counterparts of a specific equation.
What was the last thing you changed your mind about?
I like portobello mushrooms on sandwiches now. I think I just had to order the right sandwich.
Tell us about a recent and meaningful experience you had with a work of art.
A few weeks ago, I listened to Joy Boy by Julius Eastman while being stuck at Firestone Auto Care. I listened to the piece a few times over in the Firestone lobby and then while browsing the aisles of a pet store across the street. I do not own any pets and it was under atypical conditions that it took longer than expected to complete some routine maintenance on my car but those circumstances led me to particularly appreciate this music and made an otherwise banal experience feel special. Music really knocks me out.
Could you share a current, or upcoming project you’re working on?
I am releasing two LPs soon, one with my band Alive Girl and the other with my electronic duo Tender Object Systems. I am very excited to share both albums. After those two projects are seen through, I have plans to focus more energy on my visual practice.
What do you collect?
I collect everything and anything – from recorded media like records or tapes to tacky plastic trinkets to mere objects of “trash” like photographs or rusted brake pads that I’ve found discarded somewhere. Since high school I’ve dedicated storage boxes to random assortments of sentimental keepsake rubbish as items of life memorabilia and personal sentiment, I call this collection my “Box of Rain.” Outside of my physical domain, I also maintain digital collections in the form of playlists, documents, and web folders compiled of media I actively reference. I acquire things for a multitude of reasons, for entertainment/enjoyment, utility or for emotional significance and I find that much of the debris in my possession eventually supports a purpose. On the contrary, sometimes it seems I do it for no reason at all.
Interview by Paul Fitzpatrick